Sel would like to thank Marla for permission to post ~ GENERAL APPEARANCE ~ An Exclusive Interview with Don S. Davis On his Guest role in Stargate: SG-1’s Season 9 Two ~ Part Episode ‘The Fourth Horseman'.

At the recent Columbus Ohio leg of the Creation Official Stargate Convention, I had a chance to sit down with Don S. Davis to discuss his return to Stargate:SG-1 for a guest appearance in the two-part season 9 episode ‘The Fourth Horseman’. For the first seven seasons of Stargate: SG-1 Davis portrayed General George Hammond, the commander of the military facility knows as Stargate Command or SGC for short. Don S. Davis hails from the Ozark Mountains in Missouri and has spent time in his life experiencing a wide variety of careers, from Army Captain, to teacher, to actor and now painter and a sculptor, both of which have been his life long dream of his above all else.

Don S. Davis has been a semi-regular on the Creation Convention Stargate circuit. He’s definitely a fan favorite with his smooth bass voice laced with a soft touch of southern accent. A man of strong convictions and opinions, he speaks his mind on stage, but always with a good dose of humor and humble awareness of the gifts life has given him. One of those gifts being his beloved wife Ruby whom Davis speaks of with love and affection that makes you realize that romance and true love are still very much alive in the world.

Don S. Davis sat down to discuss his upcoming appearance in Stargate:SG-1. The interview was done the weekend of August 19th with all information being relevant to that point in time. ‘The Fourth Horseman’ (as death is described in the Book of Revelations) according to Stargate:SG-1 Executive Producer is about ‘a new enemy, the Ori who unleashes a plague on Earth. As forces from Stargate Command, USAMRIID, the C.D.C., the W.H.O. and concerned governments try to head off a global pandemic, SG-1 races the clock in an effort to find a cure.’

Upon hearing that fans have greeted news of his return to the show, if just in a guest appearance as good news, Don S. Davis laughed and replied, “I’ve done a couple of episodes this season. It’s funny but I just got a message on my answering machine, apparently I’ve got to go in next week and do some ADR.”

George Hammond realizing that his retirement is shot to .... NETU!

“The Fourth Horseman part one which will be airing on The Scifi Channel this Friday (9/16/05) is the pivotal mid-season cliffhanger and is General Hammond’s first appearance in season 9. Davis is wary of giving away too much information about his role in the episode. “Hammond is simply there to ensure that Washington knows how General Landry and the team are handling the problem.”

The one thing Don S. Davis did share is that he really didn’t expect to be called in to do any season 9 episodes but there was a necessity for him to be there. “I was basically substituting for the real Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General John Jumper who was suppose to do the episode.”

General Jumper, who had appeared previously in the Stargate:SG-1 season 7 episode ‘Lost City’, had to bow out of the schedule appearance on Stargate:SG-1 season 9 due to the United States being in a period of crisis. “General Jumper is a great guy,” Davis points out, “he’s a tremendous Stargate fan.” Don S. Davis also points out that Stargate SG-1 has been very fortunate in the support the U.S. Air force has given the series over the years. “As a matter of fact, they gave Rick a special medal for his work on the show.”

General Appearance ~ An Interview

‘The Fourth Horseman’ Don S. Davis’ first return to the show since the new cast changes that were made for season 9 due to former series star Richard Dean Anderson’s departure to spend more time with family and his environmental causes. Davis said that it felt great for him to be there amid all the change and to have an opportunity to work with the new cast members and to have his character of General Hammond be a part of the new dynamics.

Of the new cast members, the only two Don S Davis worked closely with were Ben Browder and Beau Bridges. Don S. Davis is an admitted ‘big fan’ of Farscape and he felt honored to be working with Ben Browder on Stargate:SG-1. “I was glad to work with Ben, he’s a great guy. Davis also enjoyed working with Beau Bridges as well. “Beau Bridges is one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. He’s doing a great job as the new General in charge of the SGC.”

Beau Bridges is doing an excellent job, but many of the fans still hold Hammond dear to their hearts and would take him back in an instant, which makes Davis smile with happiness to hear, but he is also quick to point out that General Hammond has a new job going for him. “Hammond’s working for Jack O’Neill in Washington.”

Speaking of Jack O’Neill, we touch on the subject of what it was like for Don S. Davis to come the set and work without Richard Dean Anderson being there. “I miss Rick, he and I have worked together since ‘MacGyver’.”

MacGyver was the hit series that ran on ABC for seven years and starred Richard Dean Anderson. Don S. Davis started out on MacGyver as a stuntman and as a photo double for Dana Elcar, who played MacGyver’s boss, Pete Thornton. “He was a wonderful man and I really wonderful actor.” Davis said of Elcar who passed away earlier this year.

Don S. Davis has not been able to keep up with the current seasons of the show since his departure at the end of Season 7. He has been a very busy man. “I’ve had recurring roles on two other shows and I’m working out of Los Angeles.” The shows he mentions are NCIS and The West Wing. He has also been recurring on USA’s hit series ‘The Dead Zone’.

Don S. Davis says that he misses what he calls ‘the world of Hammond’. “It was a wonderful experience for me. I’ve been really lucky and have been in a really fortunate period of my life.” Davis says that of that period, he will always consider his years on Stargate:SG-1 as General Hammond as one of the highlights of that period.

Many fans like myself consider Don S. Davis and General Hammond to be one of the highlights of Stargate:SG-1’s long and successful history as a top notch Scifi series. Make sure to catch his guest appearance in ‘The Fourth Horseman, Pt. 1’ on The Scifi Channel this Friday and in part two which premieres in January of 2006.